Time for Mike Pouncey to lead Miami Dolphins — and sound like a leader

Mike Pouncey says he’s not looking back on 2013. That it’s all about 2014. You know, looking forward.
And all that stuff. (See story, video here)
Don’t we all wish we could? Nobody wants to think about an 8-8 season that ended with a whimper, minus a playoff berth, and, oh yes, included a locker-room fiasco that made everything preceding it in this sentence secondary.
So yes, let’s get a fresh start, one that never, ever includes the words “bully” and “Incognito” and “Martin” and “Ted Wells.” Let’s do what the NFL promotes every September and Get Back to Football.
Problem is, there’s a reason history books exist. One should never turn the page without first learning from it.
Has Pouncey?

Pouncey

Pouncey didn’t come across nearly as bad as Richie Incognito (sorry) in the Ted Wells (sorry again) report, but it’s abundantly clear that Pouncey’s actions were frowned upon by the NFL, which is why the league is mandating he undergo psychological evaluation before he can play again.
Tuesday at the Dolphins’ first organized team activity of the season, Pouncey said he didn’t think he needed such testing. If Pouncey stopped there, fine. But he took it a step too far — not a first — when asked if he regretted how last season unfolded.
“Nah, not at all,” he said dismissively.
Come again?
At this point, it’d be tempting, and easy, to drop the hammer on the guy. Pouncey apologists would take it as piling on; Pouncey critics would wonder why the club didn’t get rid of him, since Pro Bowl centers evidently are sprouting on every street corner.
So let’s focus on something else.
Over the past few weeks, Pouncey has received oodles of praise for the leadership role he is taking in helping rebuild the offensive line. General manager Dennis Hickey mentioned it during the draft. By the time coach Joe Philbin and offensive line coach John Benton said it Tuesday, it was starting to have a familiar ring.
Now I remember. Last season, these words were used to describe Incognito, a member of the team’s leadership council. After the bullying scandal subsided and Incognito was swept away, it became obvious that the first step toward locker-room leadership is picking the right leader.
Never in Dolphins history has that been truer than now. The starting offensive line will likely include two rookies, two newcomers and one incumbent: Pouncey. Yes, tackle Branden Albert also is of Pro Bowl pedigree, but he arrived roughly five seconds ago.
So it all circles back to Pouncey, 24 and entering his fourth season. Public perception of him must be all over the board, but in my time around him, he probably has been the most upbeat, jovial player on the roster. Not a bad trait to have on a team fighting to get over the hump.
Maturity and decision-making is where things get dicey. Maybe Pouncey received a pass for the inexplicable decision to wear a “Free Hernandez” cap for Aaron Hernandez, an act for which he wanted to apologize but wasn’t allowed. During the draft, he made a joke via Twitter related to rookie hazing that got out of hand, reopening a wound far too quickly. Just like that, Pouncey’s Twitter account disappeared, likely at the “suggestion” of Hickey, Philbin or VP Dawn Aponte, much the same way Don Corleone suggested business associates not refuse his offers.
At that point, you hoped Pouncey had learned. Now, this.
No regrets for 2013? Why, then, is he so eager not to talk about 2013?
Today, it’s up to Hickey, Philbin and the rest of Dolphins true leadership to take stock of who’s leading this locker room.
It’s time for leaders to be held accountable.
Because, as we’ve seen, wherever those leaders go, others will follow.

I think what Philbin learned from the incident last year is that you need strong-minded football players on your team. For example don't draft any emotion unstable kids whose mommy is a lawyer. Pouncey fits the bill I guess, he definitely has friends in low places. The media is hollering for a kinder gentler team while the player and coaches probably feel like the whole "scandal" last year was a sham perpetrated by the lawyers of a whiner that had no problems until he got demoted to RT. I'm not a fan of Mr. Pouncey in fact I wish he'd just shut up and go away. But I'm also not so out of touch, like many reporters, to believe that the personnel in Miami are at all remorseful about the J. Martin affair. It appears that they have adjusted their model slightly to cut out the J. Martin types more so then the Incognito types. Case in point Mike Pouncey.

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[…] Pouncey didn’t come across nearly as bad as Richie Incognito (sorry) in the Ted Wells (sorry again) report, but it’s abundantly clear that Pouncey’s actions were frowned upon by the NFL, which is why the league is mandating he undergo psychological evaluation before he can play again. Tuesday at the Dolphins’ first organized team activity of the season, Pouncey said he didn’t think he needed such testing. If Pouncey stopped there, fine. But he took it a step too far — not a first — when asked if he regretted …read more […]